After founding the Ming dynasty and capturing Dadu, the Hongwu Emperor began establishing a new international order in East Asia. This process can be traced through various documents he sent to different countries. These documents, while diplomatic in...
After founding the Ming dynasty and capturing Dadu, the Hongwu Emperor began establishing a new international order in East Asia. This process can be traced through various documents he sent to different countries. These documents, while diplomatic in nature, also serve as key historical sources that reveal the character and direction of the East Asian international order newly constructed by the Ming Empire. In particular, the Ming Taizu Shilu(Veritable Records of the Ming Taizu) contains numerous edicts and decrees that the Hongwu Emperor sent to various states, making it an important source. However, the Da Ming Taizu Huangdi Yuzhiji(The Collected Works of the Grand Ming Taizu Emperor) includes several documents not found in the Ming Taizu Shilu, and therefore deserves attention. In this paper, six edicts included in the Da Ming Taizu Huangdi Yuzhiji that illustrate the relationship between Đại Việt and the Ming during the early years of the Hongwu reign are examined. Among these, five are either nearly identical or very similar to those recorded in the Ming Taizu Shilu, but one edict is not included there and has therefore received little scholarly attention, yet it holds significant value as a source for future analysis.
In this particular edict, the Hongwu Emperor orders Đại Việt not to send tribute too frequently and clearly states that the Ming has no intention of launching a military campaign against it. This reflects the emperor’s own thinking, but from Đại Việt’s perspective, the message could easily be interpreted as an indication that the Ming intended to sever relations. Moreover, since the formal investiture of the “King of Annam” had not yet taken place, Đại Việt likely did not consider its diplomatic relations with the Ming to be fully stabilized. This edict, which appears only in the Da Ming Taizu Huangdi Yuzhiji, vividly reveals the Hongwu Emperor’s cold and distant attitude toward Đại Việt. Based on its content, it can be identified as the edict issued in May of the 9th year of Hongwu(1376), when envoys from Đại Việt visited the Ming court.